metallica48423:
Heya, folks! We've had a few people banned recently, and there's really no single place for cohesive ban guidelines, so we thought we'd share some guidelines and suggestions with y'all.

First off, getting banned here takes quite a bit of effort. The SMF team takes great pains in working with people that have "crept up on our radar", so to speak, to guide them down a corrective path with gentle nudges via private messages. The more nudges that are done, the less lenient the team tends to be. We really try to work with everyone, as much as possible, so that no one's experience is ultimately disrupted by their actions.

Second, we actually do not discuss bans with anyone except for the person that was banned. This includes anyone that the banned member has requested contact us. I hate to be a big ol' grumpy bear about this, but the more that you persist in this manner, the more inclined we are to take issue with that and possibly implement corrective actions with you. Please remember that if a person was banned, it was for a good reason, and that person SHOULD follow proper procedure for appealing a ban, instead of relying on others to do their "dirty" work.

Third, there are some things that will cause you to be banned real quick.

* Spamming the boards.* Spamming via Private Messages.* Abuse of System Resources (including the report to mod feature).* Ignoring all requests of corrective actions.* Violating the terms of a previous reinstatement/rescinding of a previous ban.* Blatant disregard for our community rules.This isn't a de-facto list, rather, they are just some general guidelines. Please be mindful of the rules that you agreed to when you signed up here; they're there for a reason, folks. :)

Appealing a Ban: There are absolutely no guarantees that even if you appeal a ban that it will be reversed/rescinded, especially if you've been banned previously. The best way to do this would be to drop an email to info[AT]simplemachines[DOT]org.

Key things to remember:* Be Professional - Think through your email before you send it. Would this be a letter that you would send to your elected government official? If not, redo it.

* Stick to the facts - An email laced with white or blatant lies will often get overlooked.

* If you were legitimately wrong, own up to your error, and acknowledge it.

Key things to NOT do/send:* Don't send other people to contact SMF on your behalf. If you got banned, take responsibility for your own self. Don't expect/rely on others to do your work for you.